Friday, April 14, 2006
Backstreet of Kathmandu
This picture was taken several years ago in Nepal. I recently scanned in the slide and cropped it to change the original composition. I also used the dodge tool to bring out some areas in the shade.
I really like the result but the picture has bombed in several exhibitions. Maybe it does not have the initial impact that exhibition pictures need.
To me, there is a lot of mystery and intrigue in it. Here we are, in a back street of Kathmandu. There is this solitary figure, destitute in this slum area. You can’t see his face, if doesn’t matter, he is desperately trying to warm himself. Yet, at the other end of the alley, is a lone figure, watching him. Why?
There are so many questions that can’t be answered. So much that fascinates me.
Permalink / posted by and copyright of John Larry : 7:30 PM
Comments:
When you say "exhibitions" do you mean competitions? I'm not sure why it shouldn't do well in an exhibition - competitions are a diferent matter.
First of all, well done for going to the trouble of scanning a slide: it does beggar the question as to why 40 years (in my case!) of pre-digital photography should be neglected. That must be more important in a case like this when it is difficult to go to Nepal.
I like pictures utilising wide angle to put one subject in one corner and another opposite, as here. It's an interesting mix of habitat and activity, almost a mix of the two. The guy standing at the end adds a slightly surreal touch . The colouring and shadow accentuate the neglect evident in the piles of rubbish and building materials and allow the fire to become a strong feature. Maybe the Maoist rebels have a point! The horseshoe-like objects along the lintel are intriguing.
The only reason I can think that it didn't do well was because of the (relatively high) graininess but the subject matter overrides that. It is certainly better than the winner of this year's Press Photographer of the Year award.
Kathmandu. great. have been there 25 years ago. and would love to scan my slides as well.
unfortunately I don't have a film scanner.
yes the image implies the magic and mystery of the back streets.
a impression of daily life in the old areas of Kathmandu with all its rubbish.
as far as I remember this was a normal scenery not only situated in the slums.
no canalization or refuse collection. perhaps the times have changed nowadays.
less impact in exhibitions? can't judge it here as a origin slide print. but I guess the print looks
better than the scan. maybe it would work better as part of a series. or in b/w.
the audience' taste is often not predictable. anyway I like it.
particular for reminding me on a great journey a long time ago... thanks for sharing :)
Thanks for your positive comments. John - by exhibitions I mean national and international exhibitons. Something which I enter quite a lot.
Virtually most of my pictures are scanned in from slides. I am in the process of going through my entire collection, including rejects (many thousands of them). I am finding that I have a lot of images, which I had never used for one reason or another, which can be greatly enhanced by DI. Either by improving colour/contrast, changing the composition, dodging dark areas and removing unwanted items. It is quite a rewarding experience.
I see an interesting juxtaposition in this image of the older and the newer. Almost a generational thing with a more modern man or youth in the top right looking back towards something more traditional represented by the man in the bottom left. The light is lovely, glowing around the fire and its keeper’s feet.
I see no reason why this has 'bombed'. Perhaps it is the built in expectations. Pictures like this should be in black and white!
This picture does raise many questions. Is the man in the background just bored or is he waiting for the camera toting tourist to venture too far. Is the figure in the foreground really cold. If so, why nothing on the feet - even sacking.
I like the colour palette and the overall treatment through the scanner and PS or whatever. More of a book picture than a wall picture. A photo to ponder.
I've just looked back on Pegasus and I first saw this in January.
There have been some changes in the image since I first saw it and those changes are improvements.
The most noticeable is that the face of the man at the end of the alley has become more distinct. Not enough to be distracting but enough to know that he is there and has a role to play in the image.
Better...much better.
Johnjo's comment prompts the observation that there is probably an urban/rural split here: the man by the fire is possibly an immigrant from the countryside whilst the 'younger' man is probably already resident in the town. The fact that the older man has no covering on his feet might stem from his village upbringing. The man on the right is probably now toting an AK47 in the mountains.
I keep coming back to this photograph. I'm just popping back to remark that it has a dificult to define three dimensional feel to it, a bit like those holographic cards I used to collect when I was a kid. I don't know if you know what I mean but it's almost as if I'd expect to see the fire flicker and the man in white move if the photograph were rotated in the light slightly.
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First of all, well done for going to the trouble of scanning a slide: it does beggar the question as to why 40 years (in my case!) of pre-digital photography should be neglected. That must be more important in a case like this when it is difficult to go to Nepal.
I like pictures utilising wide angle to put one subject in one corner and another opposite, as here. It's an interesting mix of habitat and activity, almost a mix of the two. The guy standing at the end adds a slightly surreal touch . The colouring and shadow accentuate the neglect evident in the piles of rubbish and building materials and allow the fire to become a strong feature. Maybe the Maoist rebels have a point! The horseshoe-like objects along the lintel are intriguing.
The only reason I can think that it didn't do well was because of the (relatively high) graininess but the subject matter overrides that. It is certainly better than the winner of this year's Press Photographer of the Year award.
unfortunately I don't have a film scanner.
yes the image implies the magic and mystery of the back streets.
a impression of daily life in the old areas of Kathmandu with all its rubbish.
as far as I remember this was a normal scenery not only situated in the slums.
no canalization or refuse collection. perhaps the times have changed nowadays.
less impact in exhibitions? can't judge it here as a origin slide print. but I guess the print looks
better than the scan. maybe it would work better as part of a series. or in b/w.
the audience' taste is often not predictable. anyway I like it.
particular for reminding me on a great journey a long time ago... thanks for sharing :)
Virtually most of my pictures are scanned in from slides. I am in the process of going through my entire collection, including rejects (many thousands of them). I am finding that I have a lot of images, which I had never used for one reason or another, which can be greatly enhanced by DI. Either by improving colour/contrast, changing the composition, dodging dark areas and removing unwanted items. It is quite a rewarding experience.
This picture does raise many questions. Is the man in the background just bored or is he waiting for the camera toting tourist to venture too far. Is the figure in the foreground really cold. If so, why nothing on the feet - even sacking.
I like the colour palette and the overall treatment through the scanner and PS or whatever. More of a book picture than a wall picture. A photo to ponder.
There have been some changes in the image since I first saw it and those changes are improvements.
The most noticeable is that the face of the man at the end of the alley has become more distinct. Not enough to be distracting but enough to know that he is there and has a role to play in the image.
Better...much better.